President Nicusor Dan announced on Wednesday that he will challenge in court the decision of the Permanent Electoral Authority (AEP) not to refund him RON 1 million spent on the electoral campaign.

He mentioned that he spent RON 61 million in the two presidential rounds, and the AEP only approved the refund of RON 60 million.

„The money came about three days ago. Broadly speaking, I spent RON 61 million in the two rounds, of which RON 58.5 million were borrowed and RON 2.5 million were donated. If the AEP had refunded me the entire amount I spent, I would have been left with RON 2.5 million and the question would have been what to do with it. But the AEP only returned me RON 60 million, so about one million less. After I pay off the RON 58.5 million worth of debt, there will be one and a half million left,” the president told a press conference at the Cotroceni Palace.

He estimated that the process of recovering the RON 1 million could take about two years, and reiterated that he intends to donate the amounts to civic NGOs.

„We’re talking about a million and a half now and a million possibly in two years. And I remain committed to my idea of supporting civic organizations, not social ones. The NGO sector encompasses the civic and the social service component. That’s a lot of money … social engagement tends to evoke stronger emotional responses. But I think that not enough money is directed to the civic area, to people who go to ask questions to the authorities, sue the authorities, force the authorities to respect the law. So I think that’s where the money should go. I wouldn’t want to be the one to pick such a cause, but we should have a kind of contest, but there’s still a long way to go. So the money, this one and a half million now, we’ll put in an account and when all the arrangements to donate it are completed, I’ll let you know,” said the head of the state. AGERPRES